Thursday, August 13, 2009

Are you planting enough seeds?





One day. a guy decides that he wants to grow an apple tree in his backyard. So he walks into a garden store asking for the highest quality seeds so he can grow his tree. The store clerk gives him a bag with a bunch of seeds in it. The man tells the clerk that he doesn't need a bag. He just needs one or two of the best seeds.

The store clerk tells him that one or two of the best seeds are in the bag, but "we can't tell which one is which so you have to plant them all."

Life works exactly the same way. Many times we go out and reach for that dream or that special goal and we fall just short. That's because we didn't plant enough seeds.

In life:

1. The more people you meet (planting seeds), the more likely you will find someone interested in what you have to offer.
2. The more people you find interested in what you have to offer, the more appointments you make.
3. The more appointments you make, the more sales you make.

If you're not making enough sales, that's because:

1. You're not making enough appointments
2. If you're not making enough appointments, that's because you didn't find enough people interested in what you have to offer.
3. If you didn't find enough interested people, that's because you didn't meet enough people.

You didn't plant enough seeds.

You have to plant the seeds. You have to get out there.

In a club if a guy asks a girl to dance, and she says no, he has a choice: "Ask someone else or sit down?" If he keeps asking different ladies, someone is bound to say yes. But if he quits and sits down after asking one or two people, NO ONE WILL SAY YES.

But planting seeds, takes work. It takes guts to plant the necessary amount of seeds.

But not everyone is willing to do this; you need to get out of your comfort zone.

To get out of your comfort zone, YOU NEED A WHY.

ARE YOU PLANTING ENOUGH SEEDS???

Sunday, August 9, 2009

When The Why Is Big Enough, The Facts Don't Count




Many times, we question our ability to reach our dreams and goals. When others question our ability as well, it just confirms and exarcerbates our doubts. I'm here to tell you that when your WHY is big enough, the facts don't count.

You may not have the talent, the ability, or the skills according to society. Just remember, that as long as there is AT LEAST ONE person in the world that still believes in you, you have a chance.

You are still in the game.

Even if the only person left in the world that still believes in you...IS YOU!!!

That's OK.

People want to follow people that are self-confident, that are excited about life. People will only buy products or services from such people. If you exude confidence, you will seem competent to others and others will want to deal with you only. If a consumer has to choose between two similar products or services and they can't decide which one to pick. They pick the product with the more successful salesperson.

You may not think you are successful...it doesn't matter, what's important is that others think you are.

Everyone wants to work with winners. Nobody wants to do business with a loser.

Dream big, set your goals and pay the price.

Tuesday, August 4, 2009

Eagles & Turkeys





I believe that one of the most important jobs of a manager is to hire well. However, it is a lot easier said than done. When you find the perfect person for the job, a superstar, an eagle, it is so rewarding watching them grow into that position.

It really is.

However, to find the eagles, you have to go search through a lot of turkeys. A LOT OF TURKEYS. Turkeys look like eagles, they have a beak, they have wings and they have feathers... but the similarities end there.

Turkeys are no eagles.

First of all, turkeys can't fly, they can't defend themselves, and they need to be fed and taken care of. Turkeys are a lot of work,they are high-maintenance. Besides, people eat turkey on Thanksgiving.

Eagles on the other hand, have no natural enemies (name one animal that eats eagles), they can fly and they feed and care for themselves. NO ONE MESSES WITH AN EAGLE.

Not only do eagles fly, THEY SOAR.

Turkeys are high-maintenance and eagles are not. Eagles are self-sufficient.

Eagles are winners.

So the goal of every great manager, is to find as many eagles as possible. THE TEAM WITH THE MOST EAGLES WINS. That's it. It's that simple.

You can now manage.

The job becomes very easy when you have a team full of eagles. But when you have a team full of turkeys, the job becomes extremely difficult. No management technique in the world will save you from a team that has too many turkeys. You will fail as a manager.

In management, there is nothing worse than hiring the wrong people (turkeys). In fact, it is my belief that terminating someone for poor performance is not really the person's fault. That person needed a job. That person did what they had to do to win that job. The fault really lies on the manager for making a hiring mistake. The manager hired a turkey.

When I interview candidates for a position, I go through several people until I find that eagle, that one person that I think has what it takes to get the job done. The funny thing is everyone sounds great on the interviews: "Hire me and I will be your top rep", "hire me and I will solve all of your problems." It would be so much easier to identify the turkeys if they would only tell the truth: "Hire me and I will commit fraud." "Hire me and I will sleep on the job."

Because everyone sounds the same and their credentials of the different candidates are similar, I like to dig a little deeper. The key to finding the eagles, is to find out if they have a WHY. What motivates them? Why are they here? How do they feel if they miss goal? Do they care?



People that have a WHY, can make things happen. These are the eagles.

People that don't have a WHY, will just watch things happen. These are the turkeys.

Saturday, August 1, 2009

Are YOU a crab in a bucket?





Ask any fisherman, if you catch a crab and stick it in a bucket; you have to put a lid on it, because that crab will eventually climb out. However, if you put two crabs or several crabs in the same bucket, you won't even need to cover that bucket; because amazingly enough, none of the crabs will climb out. The reason being is that as soon as one crab tries to escape, the other crabs conspire to pull that crab down. It never occurs to the selfish crabs that if they worked together, they ALL could escape.

Are YOU a crab in a bucket? Do you find that people are making fun of your WHY? Are other people telling you that what you are trying to accomplish is much too difficult? Are other people telling you that you will not be successful at this, that you're wasting your time? These are "the crabs" who are trying to block your progress. They can be your family, your friends, your co-workers, even your spouse. People resent others that are trying to accomplish something worthwhile; because it forces them to look at themselves in the mirror and face the fact that they are where they are because of the choices they have made throughout their lives. Instead of reaching for their dreams, they gave up on them.

They settled.

Don't share your WHY with others because you will only hear negativity. You can tell your spouse or best friend IF they're going to be supportive. But if they're not, be prepared to hear some tough words.

Hang on to your WHY and remain focused on that finish line.

You can do it.

Followers